American Romanian Festival 2024/25 • Program Book 1

AMERICAN ROMANIAN FESTIVAL 2005–2025

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YEAR

ANNIVERSARY

OCTOBER 13, 2024 OCTOBER 19, 2024 NOVEMBER 10, 2024

americanromanianfestival.org

WELCOME TAB LE O F CO N T E N TS

Board of Directors Staff Sponsors Thank You Donors October 13, 2024 Concert Program October 19, 2024 Concert Program November 10, 2024 Concert Program Mike Chen, viola Jeremy Crosmer, cello Will Haapaniemi, viola

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Heidi Han, violin David LeDoux, cello Sujin Lim, violin Ovidiu Marinescu, composer Shannon Orme, clarinet Ionică Pop, composer Eva Stern, viola Marian Tănău, violin Dorel Tătaru, poet Pompilian Tofilescu, poet Wise Giving Strategies

Save the date!

The festival organizes an ongoing schedule of educational, cultural, and artistic events.

Please check americanromanianfestival.org for future events as they get posted and join us for an upcoming event!

Into the Shadows

Romanian Echoes

C HAMB E R M USI C CO N C E RT

CHA M B E R M US IC CONC ERT

Friday, January 31, 2025 / 7:30 p.m.

Kerrytown Concert House 415 N 4th Ave Ann Arbor, MI 48104

Sunday, February 23, 2025 / 7:30 p.m.

Kerrytown Concert House 415 N 4th Ave Ann Arbor, MI 48104

B OAR D O F D I R E CTO RS

STA FF

Marian Tănău, President Maureen D’Avanzo Franz Herbert Silviu Pala Lori Runco John Santeiu Jr.

Marian Tănău, President & Artistic Director Joan Olkowski, Website & Design Lori Newman, Operations

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AMERICAN ROMANIAN FESTIVAL 2024/25 • PROGRAM BOOK 1

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SPONSORS. S PONS O RS

The American Romanian Festival programs are supported by our generous sponsors.

T HANK YO U

Monica Swartout-Bebow—Artistic & Executive Director, Kerrytown Concert House Leah Celebi—Vice President of Community Engagement & Programming, The War Memorial Joan Olkowski—Website & Design Lori Newman—Editing Matthew Pons—Stage Department Head, Detroit Symphony Orchestra The Santeiu Family Joachim Stepniewski—Video & Photography Jennifer Tănău

G O LD LE VE L

FR I E NDS CI RC L E

$3000–$4999 Elizabeth Greve & Franz Herbert John & Judy Santeiu Jr. Marian & Jennifer Tănău

$50–$299 Hermina Anghelescu Ioan & Georgeta Atanasiu Paul & Barbara Burakoff Marcy Chanteaux Doug & Minka Cornelson Mircea & Daniela Cure Maureen D'Avanzo Doina David Ileana Dragnea Michel Erussard & Patricia Balbiano

S ILV ER L E V E L

$1000–$2999 Ann & James Nicholson Silviu & Gela Pala B R O NZ E L E VE L

$300–$999 Mihaela & Jason Batke Dragos & Roxana Galusca Iuliana & Ovidiu Niculescu Elena & Razvan Sebe

Joanna Firestone Viorica Fuchs Adrian & Ella Gheorghiu Miahi Lehne Lynne Metty Cristina Muresan & Rabah Hadjit Razvan Pala Wiley Pickett Jr. Ioan & Silvia Stan Elena Vasiliu

20 YEAR ANNIVERSARY SEASON • americanromanianfestival.org

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CONCERT Different Trains C HAMB E R M USI C CO N C E RT

Sunday, October 13, 2024 / 7 p.m.

The War Memorial, Alger Center Ballroom 32 Lake Shore Drive Grosse Pointe Farms, MI 48236

ADMISSION ⁄ $10–$25 General Admission: $25; Students: $10 ART ISTS

Sujin Lim, violin Marian Tănău, violin Eva Stern, viola David LeDoux, cello Shannon Orme, clarinet Dorel Tătaru, poet The American Romanian Festival celebrates its 20th-anniversary season with an evening of works centered around travel that’s sure to cure the wanderlust in us all. First on the program is a recently commissioned piece

by Ionica Pop, Impressions from Romania, that reflects the joy of celebration and the need for human communion and peace

through music. In The Seven Dreams of Frida Kahlo for Clarinet and String Quartet, composer Ovidiu Marinescu takes us on an imaginary journey of dreams, from Mayan ritual dances to mariachi music to bebop jazz—which Frida Kahlo heard in New York in her travels with partner Diego Rivera—to an Arabic dream and pagan dance with Russian flair. Lastly, Steve Reich’s Different Trains for String Quartet and Pre-Recorded Performance Tape expresses the basic idea that carefully chosen speech recordings can generate musical materials for musical instruments. The piece is inspired by the composer’s childhood: When he was only 1 year old, Reich’s parents separated. His mother moved to Los Angeles while his father remained in New York. He traveled back and forth by train frequently between New York and Los Angeles from 1939 to 1942, accompanied by the governess.

Different Trains is a reflection of Reich’s realization that as a Jew, had he been in Europe during those years, he easily could have been riding a very different kind of train. The performance will also feature a poetry reading with Dorel Tătaru. ❖

CO NC ERT P R O GRA M

Ionica Pop (b. 1967) Impressions from Romania ••• World premiere; commissioned by the American Romanian Festival ••• Ovidiu Marinescu (b. 1965) The Seven Dreams of Frida Kahlo for Clarinet and String Quartet I. Prologue II. New York III. Mayan Ritual Dance IV. Amor. Bésame—Homage to Consuelo Velasquez (1940) ••• World premiere •••

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- INTERMISSION Steve Reich (b. 1936) Different Trains for String Quartet and PreRecorded Performance Tape I. America—Before the War II. Europe—During the War III. After the War (Played without pause)

AMERICAN ROMANIAN FESTIVAL 2024/25 • PROGRAM BOOK 1

CONCERT. Consonance vs.

Dissonance—Bentoiu & Mozart String Quartets C HAMB E R M USI C CO N C E RT

Saturday, October 19, 2024 / 2 p.m.

Steinway Piano Gallery Detroit 2700 E West Maple Rd Commerce Charter Twp, MI 48390

ADMISSION ⁄ $10–$25 General Admission: $25; Students: $10 ART ISTS

Sujin Lim, violin Marian Tănău, violin Mike Chen, viola Jeremy Crosmer, cello Pompilian Tofilescu, poet

Mozart’s String Quartet No. 19 in C Major, K. 465, is nicknamed “Dissonance” due to the unusual, dissonant counterpoint found in its slow introduction. It is perhaps the most famous of his quartets. The 22-bar Adagio opens with quiet eighth-note Cs in the cello. The viola then joins on A-flat and the second violin on E-flat. The first dissonance is created once the first violin enters on an A, thus creating tension between the A-flat and A that will be a recurring feature in the entire quartet. This introduction presents the major ideas that will recur throughout the piece. Almost two hundred years later, Romanian composer Pascal Bentoiu’s String Quartet No. 2, “Consonance,” is an example of very tonal music in an age when dissonance is taken to exaggerated levels and reigns in much music of the time.

Bentoiu believed that perhaps the consonant chords in his work will provoke the same unpleasantness as Mozart’s dissonant chords did in his String Quartet No. 19. The performance will also feature a poetry reading with Pompilian Tofilescu. ❖

CO NC ERT P R O GRA M

Pascal Bentoiu (1927–2016) String Quartet No. 2, “Consonance,” Op. 19 I. Adagio—Allegretto II. Giusto III. Larghetto IV. Allegro molto moderato

- INTERMISSION Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791) String Quartet No. 19 in C Major, “Dissonance,” K. 465 I. Adagio—Allegro II. Andante cantabile III. Menuetto and Trio. Allegro IV. Allegro molto

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CONCERT D ET R O I T SYM P H O N Y O R C HE STRA & AMER ICA N R O M A N I A N F E STI VA L P R E SE NT

Into the Shadows— An Evening of Chamber Music C HAMB E R M USI C CO N C E RT

Sunday, November 10, 2024 / 7:00 p.m.

The War Memorial, Alger Center Ballroom 32 Lake Shore Drive Grosse Pointe Farms, MI 48236

ADMISSION ⁄ $10–$15 General Admission: $15; Students: $10 ART ISTS

Heidi Han, violin Marian Tănău, violin Will Haapaniemi, viola Jeremy Crosmer, cello

The Detroit Symphony Orchestra and the American Romanian Festival—celebrating its 20th-anniversary season—present an evening of works centered around the subject of death.

The first work on the program, Rota II by Romanian composer Cornelia Tăutu, is a duet for violin and violoncello that opens slowly and austerely and evokes the contemplative nature of a long-forgotten ancestral melody. George Crumb’s reaction to the horrors of the Vietnam War is expressed through his threnody, Black Angels. The work is structured around the numbers 13 and 7, numerals often related to fate and destiny, and several tonal musical quotations can be found throughout the piece, including snippets from our next work on the program, Schubert’s “Death and the Maiden” string quartet. Written in 1824, Schubert’s “Death and the Maiden” was the composer’s coming to terms with his long-term illness and impending death, and has been called “one of the pillars of the chamber music repertoire.” ❖

CO NC ERT P R O GRA M

Cornelia Tăutu (1938–2019) Rota II for Violin and Cello (2005) George Crumb (b. 1929) Black Angels for Electric String Quartet (1970) I. Departure 1. THRENODY I: Night of the Electric Insects, 2. Sounds of Bones and Flutes 3. Lost Bells 4. Devil-music 5. Danse Macabre (Duo alternativo: Dies Irae) II. Absence 6. Pavana Lachrymae (Der Tod und das Mädchen) (Solo obbligato: Insect Sounds) 7. THRENODY II: BLACK ANGELS!

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8. Sarabanda de la Muerte Oscura (Solo obbligato: Insect Sounds) 9. Lost Bells (Echo) (Duo alternativo: Sounds of Bones and Flutes) III. Return 10. [Solo: Aria accompagnata] God-music 11. Ancient Voices 12. Ancient Voices (Echo) 13. THRENODY III: Night of the Electric Insects - INTERMISSION Franz Schubert (1787–1828) String Quartet No. 14, “Death and the Maiden” I. Allegro II. Andante con moto III. Scherzo—Allegro molto IV. Presto

AMERICAN ROMANIAN FESTIVAL 2024/25 • PROGRAM BOOK 1

ARTISTS. Mike Chen

Jeremy Crosmer

V IO LA

CE LLO

Mike joined the Viola Section of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in 2018. He was Associate Principal Viola of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra from 2012 to 2018 and served as its Acting Principal Violist from 2012 to 2017. Mike was a member of the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra from 2003 to 2012, and prior to that, a member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago from 1992 to 1995. Additionally, Mike has performed with the Cincinnati Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, and Chicago Symphony. In 2017, Mike joined the Cincinnati Symphony on its European Festivals Tour.

Mike received his Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from Northwestern University, studying violin with Blair Milton. In 1999 he began playing the viola and studied with Li-kuo Chang. His other teachers include Michael Strauss, Peter Slowik, Keith Conant and Baird Dodge.

Mike received a Master’s degree in Conducting at Northwestern University in 1999, studying with Victor Yampolsky and Mariusz Smolij. His other conducting teachers include Gilbert Varga, David Zinman, and Murry Sidlin. Mike was a conducting fellow at the American Academy of Conducting in Aspen, Colorado in 2008. He has also served as Assistant Conductor of the Saint Louis Symphony Youth Orchestra, guest conductor of the Webster University Community Music School’s Young People’s Symphony Orchestra, and guest conductor of the Indianapolis Symphony Side-by-Side Orchestra. ❖

Jeremy Crosmer is a remarkable young artist, both as a cellist and a composer. Crosmer completed multiple graduate degrees from the University of Michigan in cello, composition, and theory pedagogy, and received his DMA in 2012 at age 24. From 2012 to 2017, he served as the assistant principal cellist in the Grand Rapids Symphony, and he joined the DSO in May 2017. He is the composer and arranger for the GRS Music for Health Initiative, which pairs symphonic musicians with music therapists to bring classical music to hospitals.

In March 2017, the Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital launched a music channel that runs continuously, using four hours of meditative music composed by Crosmer and performed by musicians of the GRS. Crosmer is a founding member of the modern music ensemble Latitude 49. He is also a current member of the band ESME, a duo that aims to broaden the education of classical music by bringing crossovers and mashups of pop and classical music to schools throughout Michigan. ESME released its first CD in December 2016.

In April 2013, Crosmer toured London with the Grand Valley State University Chamber Orchestra. He performed the Vivaldi Double Concerto with Alicia Eppinga and the GRS in March 2016. While still in school, Crosmer was awarded the prestigious Theodore Presser Graduate Music Award to publish, record, and perform his Crosmer-Popper duets. He recorded the duets with Julie Albers, and both sheet music and CD are available online. ❖

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ARTISTS Will Haapaniemi

Heidi Han

V IOLA

V I O LI N

Born in Los Angeles, Will Haapaniemi discovered his love for the violin at the age of 2, inspired by Itzhak Perlman’s performance on Sesame Street. From that early spark, his path was clear, though his time was also divided between passions such as Capoeira, dance, and training for his glider pilot license.

He credits much of his development to the guidance of his teachers. Yoko Takebe and Michael Gilbert of the New York Philharmonic, whom he studied with at the Manhattan School of Music, played a pivotal role in shaping his musicianship. During high school, he learned much from his teacher, the soloist Mark Kaplan, while also being the recipient of a scholarship to study with the legendary Ruggiero Ricci in Palm Springs. Will’s parents, cousin Paul Roby of the Philadelphia Orchestra, and his aunt were essential in supporting him throughout his journey.

In 2014, Will joined the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, performing alongside his wife, violinist Heidi Han. He remains active as a soloist with orchestras and as a chamber musician, frequently performing on both violin and viola. Outside of his musical life, Will loves the outdoors, spending his free time hiking, rock climbing, flying small planes, and skiing in the winter. ❖

Korean violinist Heidi Han first picked up a violin at the age of 5. Born and raised in Korea, she began her studies with JaeKwang Song while attending Yewon School of Arts. When Heidi was 13, her family moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, and she continued her studies with Robert Davidovici. While in Canada, she served the Vancouver Youth Symphony Orchestra as a concertmaster and won first prize at the Kiwanis Competition, Burnaby Clef Concerto Competition, and the Young Artists of British Columbia Competition.

Heidi received both her Bachelor’s degree and graduate performance diploma from the Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University, earning the Peabody Merit Scholarship for both programs. During her time at Peabody, Heidi studied with Victor Danchenko and was the concertmaster for the Peabody Concert Orchestra. While pursuing her degrees, she won first prize in the Marbury Competition and was awarded the Josef Kaspar Award, and she was invited to join the Keshet Eilon International Violin Mastercourse in Israel to study with Shlomo Mintz.

Currently, Heidi plays with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra as a second violinist and lives in Detroit, Michigan, where she enjoys great music-making with her colleagues and her husband, Will Haapaniemi. ❖

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AMERICAN ROMANIAN FESTIVAL 2024/25 • PROGRAM BOOK 1

ARTISTS. David LeDoux

Sujin Lim

C ELLO

V I O LI N

David LeDoux has appeared as a soloist with the Syracuse Symphony, the Skaneateles Festival Chamber Orchestra, the Tulsa Philharmonic, the Oklahoma State University Symphony, the Louisiana Sinfonietta, and the Mid-Texas Symphony.

LeDoux is an active and avid chamber musician, including many years with the Syracuse Society for New Music. As a committed private teacher, he spent 2012 as a cello instructor for Imagine Syracuse, a music program in an inner-city school that was modeled after the El Sistema program in Venezuela.

Previous professional engagements for David have included serving as Principal Cellist with the Baton Rouge (LA) Symphony, the Mississippi Gulf Coast Symphony, and the Louisiana Sinfonietta. Last summer, David returned to his faculty position with the Eastern Musical Festival in Greensboro, NC. David and his wife currently reside in Madison Heights, and David includes among his hobbies reading, running, and movies. ❖

Violinist Sujin Lim was born in Seoul, South Korea, where she began her musical studies at age 5. She joined the Detroit Symphony Orchestra as section violinist in 2017.

Sujin is a prizewinner in numerous national and international violin competitions, including the Lodolfo Lipizer International Violin Competition (Italy), Torun International Violin Competition (Poland), Indianapolis Matinee Musical Scholarship Competition, Indiana University Sibelius Concerto Competition (United States), and the Joongang Music Competition and Ewha Kyunghyang Competition (Korea).

Sujin has appeared in recital and as a soloist throughout Korea, Europe, and the United States with the Romania Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonic Orchestra of Bacau, Torun Symphony Orchestra, Yeonsae University, and the Indiana University Philharmonic Orchestra.

As a chamber musician, she is member of the EM trio in Korea and performed in such chamber recitals as Yagi Studio, Jungdong Hall, KNUA Hall, and Kumho Art Hall. Sujin has also served as principal concertmaster in the Evansville Philharmonic, Indiana University Symphony, KNUA Symphony, and the Aspen Conducting Academy Orchestra. ❖

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ARTISTS Ovidiu Marinescu COMP OS E R

Ovidiu Marinescu is internationally recognized as a cellist, composer, conductor, and educator. His compositions have been performed in Romania, China, Brazil, Bulgaria, Russia, Guatemala, Montenegro, and across the United States. Parma Recordings included I’m All Ears for solo cello on the album Moto Celeste and Rorrim No. 1. A Sort Essay on the album Through Glass. The piano trio “The Journey” is the centerpiece of the Navona Records album A Grand Journey, in a spectacular performance by Trio Casals. Marinescu has been composer-inresidence for the International Chamber Music Festival in Guatemala City and the 7th edition of the International String Encounters in Limeira, Brazil. His Concerto for Two Cellos, String, and Percussion was co-commissioned by seven orchestras in 2020 with funding from West Chester University. His recent clarinet quintet titled The Seven Dreams of Frida Kahlo is dedicated to renowned clarinetist Ricardo Morales and The Dali Quartet. Marinescu’s compositional style is eclectic, and his works are often inspired by ethnic music from around the world, such as in his recent orchestral work The Day I Started, which was premiered in May 2024 by the Westchester Chamber Soloists (NY) and uses Scandinavian tunes.

Marinescu has performed at Carnegie Hall, Weill Hall, Merkin Hall (New York), the Great Hall of the Moscow

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Conservatory, Holywell Room in Oxford, and the Oriental Art Center in Shanghai, and has appeared as soloist with the London Symphony, New York Chamber Symphony, National Radio Orchestra of Romania, and the Moscow Chamber Orchestra; the Helena, Great Falls, Portsmouth, and Newark Symphonies; the Southeastern Pennsylvania Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Philharmonic, Limeira Symphony in Brazil, Orquesta de Extremadura in Spain, and the Sinfonietta Vidin (Bulgaria), and most of the professional orchestras in his native Romania. Marinescu has more than 25 album releases for Parma Recordings and Cambria. His MOTO series, developed with Parma Recordings, has premiered works by nearly fifty composers in both recordings and performance at Carnegie Hall.

Equally successful as a conductor, Marinescu has worked with the Russian Philharmonic Orchestra in Moscow, the Chamber Orchestra of the Romanian National Radio, “New Russia” State Orchestra, the Orchestra Society of Philadelphia, the Bacau, Craiova, Ploiesti, Botosani, Targu Mures, and Braşov Philharmonics in Romania, Filarmonica de Gaia in Portugal, Orquesta de Extremadura in Spain, the Helena, Newark, and Southeastern Pennsylvania Symphony Orchestras, as well as Vidin Sinfonietta in Bulgaria.

Marinescu is cello professor at West Chester University in Pennsylvania as well as founder and Artistic Director of the International Musicians Academy.

More information can be found at marinescu.com. ❖

AMERICAN ROMANIAN FESTIVAL 2024/25 • PROGRAM BOOK 1

ARTISTS. Shannon Orme

Ionică Pop

Shannon Orme was appointed bass clarinet of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in 2007. Prior to joining the DSO, she served as co-principal clarinet of the Hyogo Performing Arts Center Orchestra in Japan.

She has performed with numerous major domestic and international orchestras including the Grand Teton Music Festival, New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, and the World Orchestra for Peace. As a result of her commitment to the DSO’s outreach work, Orme was one of five musicians nationwide to receive the 2016 Ford Musician Award for Excellence in Community Service, sponsored by the Ford Motor Company Fund and the League of American Orchestras. Upon graduating from the Interlochen Arts Academy, Orme attended Northwestern University (BM) and the University of Southern California (MM). Her primary teachers include Jean Miller, Richard Hawkins, J. Lawrie Bloom, and Yehuda Gilad. Orme resides in Unadilla, Michigan, with her dog, Crank. ❖

Ioan (Ionică) Pop was born in Sîngeorz–Băi, Romania, on August 20, 1967. He studied oboe and piano at the Lyceum of Music in Cluj-Napoca from 1977 to 1985. He continued with graduate studies in composition at the Gheorghe Dima Conservatory of Music in ClujNapoca from 1986 to 1991, under Professor Cornel Ţăranu, who directed his doctoral thesis, Tendencies and Structures in Today's Music. Ionică obtained his Ph.D. in music in June 2004.

In 2006, Mr. Pop completed a diploma as Director of Musical Theatre at the Gheorghe Dima Academy of Music in Cluj-Napoca, and in 2009 graduated from a module course in organ in Professor Erik Turk’s class. He performs piano and organ concerts both at home and abroad.

Currently, Mr. Pop is Associate Professor at the Department of Musicology of the Gheorghe Dima National Academy of Music, in the Section for Theory, Solfeggio, and Dictation. His works have been performed in prestigious festivals such as Cluj Musical Autumn, Cluj Modern, and George Enescu International Festival; at the George Enescu Museum in Bucharest; and in Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Denmark, France, Israel, and the U.S. In recent years, he organized the Aurel Stroe Festival and Symposium from Buşteni, Romania.

Mr. Pop is interested in investigating the convergence between composition and direction in instrumental theatre, and also in

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Eva Stern

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V I O LA

original ways to compose for voice using his own poems as lyrics. Since 2008, he has been leading the contemporary music ensemble Impact XXI, which includes soprano, trombone, piano, and percussion. ❖

Violist Eva Stern wears many hats, including chamber musician, orchestral player, and movement educator. She is a member of the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra, and has served on music school faculties including those of Eastern Michigan University, Bowling Green State University, and Virginia Commonwealth University. Previously, she has been a member of the St. Louis Symphony and the Louisville Orchestra, and plays as a substitute musician with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. Eva is a founding member of the Michigan-based Muse Ensemble, and has performed with chamber ensembles including the Chautauqua String Quartet, the Michigan Chamber Players, Chamber Music Ann Arbor, and the American Romanian Festival.

Eva is a Pilates teacher and Franklin Method educator. She specializes in working with musicians and teaches musician-focused movement classes and workshops across the country and online. You can learn more about her at fortemovement.com. ❖

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AMERICAN ROMANIAN FESTIVAL 2024/25 • PROGRAM BOOK 1

Marian Tănău

Dorel Tătaru

V IO LIN

POET

Romanian-born violinist Marian Tănău began his musical education in his hometown of Timisoara in Romania. He graduated from Liceul de Muzica “Ion Vidu,” where he studied violin with Maria Cleşiu. He then left for the Romanian city of Cluj-Napoca and the Conservatorul de Muzica “G. Dima,” where he earned an Artists Diploma. Later in the U.S., he earned a graduate degree from Bowling Green State University.

Tănău joined the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in 1995. He has appeared as a soloist with orchestras in Romania and the U.S. and is an active chamber musician.

In 2004, Tănău joined the violin faculty at Wayne State University. In 2005, he was awarded a sabbatical year and moved temporarily to Romania where he joined the music faculty at the National College of Art “Ion Vidu,” and the Music Conservatory of the West University from Timisoara.

His recording of the Violin Sonata

by Paul Paray, recorded for Grotto Productions, received praise from critics in the prestigious Strad, Gramophone, and Fanfare Magazines.

Marian Tănău is the founder and president of the American Romanian Festival, Inc., a nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote American and Romanian music and culture to audiences in the U.S. and Europe. Currently, he also serves as President & CEO of the New Mexico Philharmonic. ❖

Dorel Tătaru, poet and essayist, was born on March 30, 1972, in the Urecheni commune, Neamț County, Romania. He spent the first three years of his life in the Păstrăveni commune in Neamț County, after which he moved with his family to the city of Braşov and then to Hoghiz-Braşov. He studied at St. O. Iosif High School in Rupea-Braşov, Hidromecanica Industrial High School Braşov, and at the famous university Sextil Puşcariu Braşov. Currently, he lives in the Detroit, Michigan, suburbs. He has published poems in magazines that appear under the auspices of the Writers' Union of Romania such as Poezia magazine from Iasi, Libris literary magazine from Braşov, Conta magazine from Piatra Neamț, the culture magazines Argeş and Caiete Silvane from Zalău as well as in other literary and cultural magazines from Romania and abroad; Gracious Light magazine (Lumină Lină) from New York, Conexiuni Culturale magazine from Cleveland, Vâlcea Culturală magazine, the literary and artistic magazine Cahulul from Bessarabia, and eCreator magazine from Baia Mare. From January 2023, he has collaborated on essays in Argeş magazine.

He has published two volumes of poetry, Librarian, a Shot Wrapped in Paper! with Creator publishing house in Braşov in 2022 and Horseshoeing of Pegasus also in 2022 with Colorama publishing house in Cluj-Napoca. In 2025, he will publish his third volume of poetry and his first volume continued on 14

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Pompilian Tofilescu

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POET

of essays, and he is currently working on his first novel, which is eagerly anticipated.

He received critical references from important writers such as Adrian Alui Gheorghe, Laurentiu-Ciprian Tudor, and Iulian Cătălui. ❖

Pompilian Tofilescu has lived in Romania, Canada, and the U.S., currently residing in Michigan. He has lived his life between two languages, Romanian and English, and between two passions, engineering and literature.

In his home country, he has published articles, poems, and short stories in dozens of printed magazines and online platforms, and has been included in eight anthologies.

He also published two collections of short stories, Wolves and Rotten Apples, 2019, and The Cathedral of the Spoons, 2021, as well as a book of poetry, #57, 2021.

In the Unites States, Pompilian Tofilescu published a short-stories collection, The Jester. 11 Strange Stories, 2024. Currently, he’s working on three other books, one of short stories and one of poetry, which will be published next year, and on a novel.

Pompilian Tofilescu works as a Technical Expert for Ford Motor Company, and he holds eight U.S. and international patent grants in the field of vehicle systems and electronics. Since September 2023, he has been the president and founder of the “Romanian Spirit” Community Association and of the Michigan Acasă newspaper, whose mission is to preserve and promote the unity and identity of the Romanian community in Michigan. ❖

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AMERICAN ROMANIAN FESTIVAL 2024/25 • PROGRAM BOOK 1

WISE GIVING STRATEGIES PLEASE BE PART OF OUR SUCCESS & JOIN OUR FAMILY OF DONORS! Strategies For Wise Giving Plan

There are many ways to support the American Romanian Festival Inc. We thank our members, donors, volunteers, and sponsors for their loyalty, enthusiasm, and their help in supporting the events of the American Romanian Festival Inc., which bridge cultures and foster mutual understanding.

Looking To Make Smart Donations?

Based on presentations by professional financial advisors, here are some strategies for giving wisely, following recent changes in the tax law. The advisors identified five strategies that make great sense. Here they are in brief: GIVE CASH: Whether you itemize deductions or not, it still works well.

GIVE APPRECIATED ASSETS: This helps you avoid capital gains taxes, will give you a potentially more significant deduction if you itemize, and can reduce concentrated positions in a single company.

BUNCH GIVING: Give double your normal amount every other year to maximize deductions.

QUALIFIED CHARITABLE DISTRIBUTION/REQUIRED MINIMUM DISTRIBUTION: If you are required to take an IRA distribution, don’t need the cash, and don’t want the increased taxes, have the distribution sent directly to a qualified charity.

HIGH-INCOME YEARS: If you are going to have high-income years (for any number of reasons), accelerate your deductions, avoid capital gains, and spread out gifts through a Donor-Advised Fund.

BE PROACTIVE: Consult your own financial advisor to help you implement any of these.

START YOUR STRATEGY TODAY Please consider applying one or more of these strategies for your extra giving to the American Romanian Festival Inc.

QUESTIONS OR MORE INFORMATION, CALL MARIAN TĂNĂU 734.308.5372

American Romanian Festival Inc. PO Box 4352 Ann Arbor, MI 48106 americanromanianfestival.org

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MISS I O N

The American Romanian Festival Inc. is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to foster mutual understanding and promote American and Eastern European music and culture.

A specific focus of the festival is to encourage cultural awareness and understanding between people of culture, musicians, and artists of the United States and Romania. The festival organizes educational, cultural, and artistic events that take place in Romania and the USA. Founded in 2005, the organization supports cultural exchanges with Americans participating in events in Romania and Romanians participating in events in the USA.

MAK E A D I F F E R E N CE

To make a tax-deductible contribution, please make checks payable to the American Romanian Festival Inc. and mail to: American Romanian Festival Inc. 1407 Ferdon Road Ann Arbor, MI 48104

americanromanianfestival.org

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YEAR

ANNIVERSARY